Marquetry Mirror Attributed to Noël Hache – 17th Century

Large and beautiful Louis XIII mirror with a reverse profile, inlaid with native woods (olive, walnut, sycamore, and submerged oak) dating from the 17th century.

It features a superb marquetry decoration of oak and acanthus leaves, created using the "hot sand burnt wood" technique, which allows for nuanced shading.
Geometric reserves surrounded by light and dark wood fillets, including heart-shaped spandrels in the corners, complete this rich ornamentation.
Also noteworthy is the very attractive frieze on the outer molding, alternating between light wood and submerged oak.
A central molding, in ebonized wood enhanced with light and dark wood fillets, frames the mirror and contrasts elegantly with the brightly colored marquetry decoration. Original wrought iron hanging hooks and parquet flooring.

An identical mirror (listed on page 80 in the book by Bernard Deloche and Jean-Yves Mornand - Provincial Cabinetmaking in France in the 18th Century) allows us to attribute our mirror to the work of Noël Hache.

The son of a baker, born in Calais in 1635, Noël Hache settled in Toulouse at the age of 21 in 1635. He was admitted as a Master in Toulouse on March 26, 1665, and became "bayle" of the guild, that is to say, the equivalent of master warden, on July 29, 1667. Archival documents show that he was perhaps the only cabinetmaker in Toulouse around 1660; this is at least a title he seems to have claimed.

It was likely in Calais, a small town in northern France quite close to the Netherlands, renowned for their expertise in floral marquetry, that he learned cabinetmaking, an art still relatively new in France, which he would later bring to Languedoc.

Dimensions:
H. 94 cm x W. 87 cm

France
Attributed to Noël Hache
Walnut, sycamore, olive, submerged oak
Original mercury mirror
17th century